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Sitting at a large, round table, Vox fidgeted in his seat like a kid with a major sugar overload.
He was bored.
Of course, the mild ADHD he'd once lived with hadn't helped much, the effects of it still felt in the electricity buzzing across his skin.
Glancing up, he watched as a few servants of Lucifer approached the table and placed down their food and drinks, the most exquisite red wine kept in a crystal glass along with the richest steak in Hell.
He noted that one of the smaller demons was giving his lover the stink eye when they placed down his drink, Valentino glaring right back at them as they walked away.
"Dig in everyone, we shall discuss matters after our meal." The king of Hell's voice rang out clear, the many overlords taking his words as an order.
Although the steak looked extremely appetizing, Vox himself wasn't much interested in eating at the moment. So, he decided to mess with Valentino a bit.
Trying to rile his boyfriend in an attempt to satiate his boredom, Vox snatched the moth demon’s wine glass from him before the man could even take a sip.
"You snooze, you lose Tino." He snickered, grinning bright at the pimp’s snarl. The man grabbed Vox's wine without a word, drinking nearly half of the glass in less than a minute.
Valentino had already been moody that day, his precious beauty sleep being interrupted by an emergency at the studio. Turns out, the emergency was a fluke, and the moth overlord had been woken up for nothing.
The thought made Vox snicker, the media demon turning his attention to the other occupants at the table.
The group they sat with consisted of Lilith and Lucifer, as well as all of the overlords of Hell. Vox noted a certain deer demon was missing and smiled to himself, smug from the wounds he had surely caused to the other.
He almost wished he had been the one to be wounded however, as he'd take the shame from losing to Alastor over the drab company.
These overlord meetings were frequent yet tedious, the boring nature of the topics discussed causing Vox to practically fall asleep every time. The only reason he kept himself from doing so was the respect and slight fear he held for the king and queen of Hell, their judgement keeping him behaved.
Tuning back in after becoming lost in his thoughts, Vox listened to the mindless jabbering of his fellow overlords.
The conversation at the dining table was fairly dull as always, none of the other demons having anything decently interesting to bring up.
He ignored any topics of discussion and sipped Val's wine, finishing it off in one big swig while enjoying the eye roll directed at him from his boyfriend. The man seemed to still be irritated he had taken his glass, his attention moving elsewhere as if to ignore the TV overlord.
Without a drink or Valentino's scrutiny to occupy him, Vox began to fidget once again, his leg bouncing up and down relentlessly.
Finally moving to take a bite of his steak as to distract himself, his eyes widened as his fork tumbled out of his hands. That was odd, he had sworn his grip was tighter. Val's glare could be felt solely in Vox's direction, but he paid it no mind.
He suddenly felt wrong.
It felt like ice was creeping through his system, crawling up from his stomach and reaching the tips of his fingers. The freezing feeling caused a shiver to run up Vox's spine, his normally cold body somehow even colder.
And then the ice turned hot.
"Vz-Val," He gasped, his voice a mere whisper. Louder this time, he called out again. "Tiiino, somethingss wrong..." He pushed himself up from the chair, holding his chest tight. It was as if flames were consuming his body, his screen a jumbled mess of static and rainbow feedback.
"Voxxy, quick bein' such a fuckin' baby. You're makin' us look bad." Not even sparing a glance Vox's way, Val's words cut sharp, anger and shame evident in his voice. The moth overlord faced the guests instead, the venom in his words causing Vox to flinch.
The gazes of the other overlords, however, were focused on Vox, their eyes burning into his head. The heat of the room was too much, and it felt like he was on fire.
"Szz-sorry-" He was cut off as he collapsed to the floor, body becoming limp. In one sudden moment, he couldn't move, couldn't cry out, and it terrified him.
He wasn't sure he had broken his screen in the fall, a shattering sound echoing through his head, but his body ached too much for him to feel if it had. The white-hot agony coursing through his veins distracted him from anything but the scorching pain.
The world turned dark for a moment, and as he came to, Vox felt hands on his body pulling his clothes open. He attempted to protest the seemingly frantic assault, but to no avail, his limbs not responding. His coat and shirt were removed, the cool air providing a welcome relief that was much too short-lived.
"-oxxy, Voxxy," A voice rose in his head, shocking his mind awake. It sounded like Valentino. Val... his lover. He was mad at Vox, mad because Vox couldn't help but make a scene and fuck things up, as always.
"Voxxy baby, you with me? C'mon sugar cube, answer me." His voice held concern, and the surprise he felt was enough to force Vox to open his eyes, to see it for himself and confirm what he had heard.
There, kneeling over him, was his most prized possession in all of Hell, the man he felt so strongly for. Vox couldn't help but let a lopsided smile form on his face, his thoughts drifting hazily.
He didn't remember lying his head back onto Val's lap, but he guessed it must have happened during his blackout. Blackout? Did he make the lights go out? He tried to focus, but his eyes began to slip closed, that searing pain taking over him once more.
"'ino, wha's happenin'?" His question was slurred, the words barely coherent.
A shuddering sigh was heard, and Vox began to feel a peaceful calmness take over his body, the pain residing from the press of a cooling palm to his chest.
"Don't worry about it, 'kay baby? You'll be okay, I've got you." And so he let himself fall back under into the quiet nothingness, Valentino’s words of reassurance soothing him to sleep.
-
Blinking slowly, the TV demon’s vision swirled into an image, the brightness of the room dissipating. He shut his eyes once more, trying to keep the nausea in his stomach at bay.
With his eyes closed, Vox noted could feel a heavy pressure against his leg, opening his eyes again to check what it was.
There, resting on his bed, was Valentino, pink drool dribbling from his mouth and onto the pale blue blanket. He chuckled at the sight, finding his phone on the bedside table next to him and snapping a quick picture.
The slight movement of Vox's body caused the moth demon to stir, his head rising from where it was cushioned by the media overlord’s leg. His expression shifted in that moment, mild irritation swiftly turning into a sweet relief.
"Mm, baby, how long've you been awake?" Valentino's tone was husky, his voice low but not quite faint enough to be a whisper.
Vox smiled at the man, grasping for one of his hands to which his boyfriend easily complied, gripping the media overlord’s own hand tight. He gently pulled Valentino towards him, pressing a light kiss to his soft lips.
"Not long, just enough to see your beautiful face dozing off on my leg. Tell me, was I comfy babe?" He teased, laughing as the taller overlord swatted at him.
"Voxxy, I swear to Lucifer if you took some pictures of me-" Valentino cut himself off as Vox's face fell, raising an eyebrow. "What's up baby?"
Vox groaned, covering his face with a hand. The meeting, he had completely forgotten about it.
"I'm just remembering the whole reason I'm here. Shit, Tino... what even happened?" His face scrunched up in thought, trying to recall the events that had unfolded. "I remember calling out to you, and then everything blanks out."
Valentino studied him like a book, Vox hunching up his shoulders under his gaze. He felt exposed, as if the pimp could see all of Vox's vulnerabilities under that stare.
"You really don't remember what happened after that?" At the shake of the TV demon’s head, Val sighed. "Shit baby, you were out for the count. Lucifer had to step in and heal you right then and there."
Vox gaped at the words coming out of Valentino's mouth, his words stuttering. "F-fuck, Lucifer? Are you telling me I owe him now?"
The thought terrified Vox that anything Lucifer demanded of him, he would be required to do without question. He could be forced to act a battery for all of Hell, or a generator, or-
Interrupting his worries, Val shook his head in disagreement.
"Nah, Luci said he takes responsibility for this one. I mean, it had been one of his servants that was tryin' to poison me," He paused, gesturing to Vox. "You just got unlucky I guess."
"...I'd rather be unlucky than it be you, Tino." Vox meant the words wholeheartedly, recalling the small demon who had sent a look that could practically kill in Val's direction.
Val laughed, hand covering his face in embarrassment. "You are such a fuckin' sap, y'know that?"
Vox's smirk was cheeky, his screen lit up bright. "It's why you love me, ain't it babe?"
His hand squeezed the moth demon’s and he relished in the contact as his boyfriend squeezed back. It was reassuring, a small reminder that he was here and he wasn't going anywhere.
"Yeah, yeah, now go back to sleep. Luci said it'll take a day or so for the poison to wash through your system. It was a strong one." His grip on the media overlord’s hand tightened, as if he was afraid of something. Afraid of a different outcome, perhaps.
Giving Valentino a fond look, he interlaced his blue-tipped fingers with the larger purple ones. "You'll stay with me, won't you babe? Be my sexy nurse caretaker?"
Closing his hand around Vox's in return, Val cackled loudly. "Sure thing baby."